1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to wireless communication devices and more particularly to modem ejection mechanisms for wireless communication devices.
2. Description of Related Art
Today, users reliance on wireless communication continues to steadily increase. This reliance includes the use of wireless communication with handheld devices. These handheld devices include Sony(trademark) CLIE(trademark) personal data assistants and Palm(trademark) handheld devices. These handheld devices allow a user to organize data and provide reminders to the user of certain upcoming events such as meetings. In addition, these devices allow a user to wirelessly communicate.
The wireless communication capabilities allow a user to access electronic mail (email), the internet, and other web applications while they are using the handheld device. However, the user is not able to simultaneously run a communication application and a non-communication application with current single-threaded devices. For instance, when a user accesses the handheld device, the user typically runs a non-communication application, such as an address book function, games or a date book function. Thus, while a non-communication application such as the address book is in use, the user may not run a communication application, such as email. Instead, the user must end the non-communication application and then engage the communication application. As may be appreciated, this interferes with the ability of a user to multitask with the device, such as running a non-communication application and checking email at the same.
In addition, as the user runs a non-communication application, if the user receives data, such as email, the handheld device does not inform the user of the new mail. The handheld device does not perform periodic checks to ascertain whether or not the user has received new communications. Currently, most handheld devices are single-threaded, thus, in order to determine whether or not new email has been sent, the user must end the non-communication application as described and access the email application. As may be appreciated, this prevents efficient use of the handheld device since the user must end a non-communication application in use prior to accessing their email account to determine whether or not the user has received email. Furthermore, current handheld devices require custom wireless communication devices tailored for that specific handheld device. Therefore, greater costs are incurred in designing a specific wireless communication device for a particular handheld device. Also, the current wireless communication devices available for handheld devices have a big footprint resulting from a short and thick configuration. As a result, the handheld device, when coupled with the prior art wireless communication devices, tends to be cumbersome and difficult to use, thereby negating the handheld aspect of the handheld device due to the large size of the wireless communication device.
Moreover, in order to allow simultaneous charging of the wireless communication device and the handheld device, the wireless communication device includes separate power chargers for the wireless communication device and the handheld device. The necessary hardware for the separate chargers (i.e. additional cables, addition circuitry, etc.) increases the overall complexity, weight and cost of the wireless communication device. Likewise, the added hardware increases the possibility of failure, thereby decreasing reliability of the wireless communication device.
Furthermore, as stated earlier, prior art wireless communication devices were not adaptable for different handheld devices. To further illustrate, the configuration of prior art wireless communication devices allowed interfacing with a single type of handheld device. As such, a wireless communication device for a particular handheld device could not be used for other devices. Manufacturers designed different wireless communication devices for different handheld devices, thereby increasing manufacturing costs and ultimately costs to consumers. In addition to increased costs associated with prior art wireless communication devices, prior art wireless communication devices lacked the capability to interface directly with peripheral devices. Thus, prior art wireless communication devices for handheld devices precluded users from engaging the wireless communication device with peripheral devices such as portable keyboards or the like.
The ejection mechanisms of prior art wireless communication devices further compounded inconvenience to users of these modems. The prior art ejection mechanisms used many parts in order to effect ejection of the modem from the wireless communication device. As such, the weight and the increased size of the additional components added to the inconvenience of the wireless communication device. In addition, the added complexity of the ejection mechanisms decreased overall reliability of the wireless communication device due to the increased possibility of failure from the additional parts. Likewise, as may be appreciated, the additional parts increased the overall cost of the wireless communication device having the prior art ejection mechanism.
Therefore, a need exists to provide a device which allows a user to simultaneously run non-communication and communication applications in a single-threaded configuration with a handheld device. The new device should allow periodic checks of email as the user operates separate functions with the handheld device. In addition, this new device should be lightweight, compact and use readily available components capable of providing wireless communication to the handheld device. Likewise, this new device should allow interface capabilities with additional peripheral devices and simultaneous charging of the modem along with the handheld device using a single connector. Also, the configuration of the wireless communication device should allow retention of modem capabilities during charging of the wireless communication device. The new device should include an ejection mechanism using a minimal amount of components, thereby maintaining the lightweight and compact nature of the device.
The present invention fills the aforementioned needs by providing a wireless communication device for handheld devices such as personal data assistants. The wireless communication device allows simultaneous charging of both the handheld device and the wireless communication device and interfacing of both the wireless communication device and the handheld device with peripheral devices.
In one embodiment of the present invention, a wireless communication device for providing wireless communication to a personal data assistant is disclosed. The wireless communication device includes a modem, an ejector sleeve and a lever arm operably connected with the wireless communication device. The modem provides wireless communication for the personal data assistant. The ejector sleeve allows coupling of the modem with the wireless communication device while the personal data assistant is coupled with the wireless communication device. The ejector sleeve rotatably couples with the lever arm at a first end of the lever arm such that the ejector sleeve rotates the lever arm in a first direction as the modem couples with the wireless communication device. The lever arm also includes a tab at an end opposite the first end. The tab operably connects with the modem such that the tab decouples the modem and ejects the modem from the wireless communication device by pushing the modem when the lever arm rotates in a direction opposite the first direction. The modem couples with the wireless communication device and ejects from the wireless communication device while the personal data assistant is coupled with the wireless communication device.
In another embodiment of the present invention, an ejection assembly for a wireless communication device is disclosed. The wireless communication device provides wireless communication to a personal data assistant using a modem coupled with the wireless communication device. The ejection assembly couples the modem with the wireless communication device and ejects the modem from the wireless communication device while the personal data assistant is coupled with the wireless communication device. The ejector assembly includes an ejector sleeve which holds the modem and a lever arm operably connected with the wireless communication device. The ejector sleeve ejects the modem from the wireless communication device while the personal data assistant couples with the wireless communication device. Likewise, the ejector sleeve couples the modem with the wireless communication device while the personal data assistant couples with the wireless communication device in order to establish connectivity between the wireless communication device and the modem. The established connectivity between the modem and the wireless communication device allows the wireless communication device to provide wireless communication to the personal data assistant. The ejection assembly also includes the lever arm rotatably coupled with the ejector sleeve at a first end of the lever arm. The lever arm activates the ejector sleeve to slide the ejector sleeve with respect to the wireless communication device. The sliding motion of the ejector sleeve couples the modem with the wireless communication device and ejects the modem from the wireless communication device. The modem ejects from the wireless communication device when a second end of the lever arm opposite the first end of the lever arm moves the modem with respect to the wireless communication device.
In a further embodiment of the present invention, an ejection assembly for coupling a modem with a wireless communication device and ejecting the modem from the wireless communication device is disclosed. The ejection assembly couples the modem with the wireless communication device such that the wireless communication device provides wireless communication capability to a personal data assistant coupled with the wireless communication device. The ejector assembly includes an ejector sleeve and a lever arm operably connected with the wireless communication device. The configuration of the ejector sleeve allows the ejector sleeve to couple and eject the modem from the wireless communication device while the personal data assistant remains coupled with the wireless communication device. When the ejector sleeve couples the modem with the wireless communication device, connectivity is established between the wireless communication device and the modem such that the wireless communication device provides wireless communication capability to the personal data assistant. The lever arm rotatably couples with the ejector sleeve at an end opposite a first end of the lever arm having a tab. The tab operably connects with the modem such that movement of the tab moves the ejector sleeve to couple the modem with the wireless communication device and ejects the modem from the wireless communication device.
Therefore, as may be appreciated, the present invention provides a wireless communication device having an ejection assembly capable of coupling a modem with the wireless communication device and ejecting the modem from the wireless communication device while a personal data assistant remains coupled with the wireless communication device. The present invention uses an ejector sleeve and lever arm to couple the modem with the wireless communication device and eject the modem from the wireless communication device. Therefore, the configuration of the ejection assembly maintains a lightweight and compact configuration of the wireless communication device.